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Cited by 458Meta-analysis and systematic reviewsStatistical Methods in Clinical TrialsStatistical Methods in Epidemiology

Understanding randomised controlled trials

Open access
Akobeng, A K·2005·Archives of Disease in Childhood
DOI 10.1136/adc.2004.058222PMC PMC1720509
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Abstract

The hierarchy of evidence in assessing the effectiveness of interventions or treatments is explained, and the gold standard for evaluating the effectiveness of interventions, the randomised controlled trial, is discussed. Issues that need to be considered during the critical appraisal of randomised controlled trials, such as assessing the validity of trial methodology and the magnitude and precision of the treatment effect, and deciding on the applicability of research results, are discussed. Important terminologies such as randomisation, allocation concealment, blinding, intention to treat, p values, and confidence intervals are explained.

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Authors
Akobeng, A. K.
Corresponding author
Akobeng, A K
ORCID
Akobeng, A K
Venue
Archives of Disease in Childhood
Publisher
BMJ
Published
2005-08-01
Volume
90
Issue
8
Pages
840-844
ISSN
  • 0003-9888 (ISSN-L)
  • 1468-2044
DOI
10.1136/adc.2004.058222
PMC
PMC1720509
OpenAlex
W2139339819
Cited by
458
References
4
Citations by year
2026: 14 · 2025: 22 · 2024: 41 · 2023: 51 · 2022: 75 · 2021: 36 · 2020: 31 · 2019: 33 · 2018: 23 · 2017: 33 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 16 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 8
FWCI
8.47
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Archives of Disease in Childhood (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty › Meta-analysis and systematic reviews
  • Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Statistical Methods in Clinical Trials
  • Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Statistical Methods in Epidemiology
Keywords
randomized controlled trials, evidence hierarchy, critical appraisal, trial validity, treatment effect estimation, randomization, allocation concealment, blinding, intention-to-treat analysis, p-values, confidence intervals
MeSH terms
Child, Child Welfare, Decision Making, Humans, Pediatrics, Reproducibility of Results, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Evidence-Based Medicine, Comprehension

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